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The Life and Work of Fr. Daniel Brottier

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The Life and Work of Fr. Daniel Brottier Spiritan Papers Volume 17 Number 17 Easter Article 5 1984 The Life and Work of Fr. Daniel Brottier Jean Gosselin Follow this and additional works at: https://dsc.duq.edu/spiritan-papers Part of the Catholic Studies Commons Recommended Citation Gosselin, J. (1984). The Life and Work of Fr. Daniel Brottier. Spiritan Papers, 17 (17). Retrieved from https://dsc.duq.edu/spiritan-papers/vol17/iss17/5 This Article is brought to you for free and open access by the Spiritan Collection at Duquesne Scholarship Collection. It has been accepted for inclusion in Spiritan Papers by an authorized editor of Duquesne Scholarship Collection. THE LIFE AND WORK OF FATHER DANIEL BROPTIER Father Brottier's entire life was filled with God, the God of love whose tenderness and mercy St. ThBrBse of Lisieux showed out afresh at the end of the nineteenth century, tinged as it still was with Jansenism. His life was oriented towards "the poor and little ones", from Senegal to Auteuil - God's chosen ones. It was enlivened by a faith that swept all obsta- cles aside, that motivated his every action and kept him in close union with God. Daniel Brottier was born on 7 September 1876 at La FertB-Saint-Cyr, a pretty little village not far from the town of Chambord in the Department of Loire-et-Cher. The house he was born in lay close to the ch2teau; his father was coachman to the Marquis of Durfort. He always wanted to be a priest, and started learning Latin even before he started school. His little witticism, "I will be Pope", had a depth beyond the ordi- nary, it revealed his personality unambiguously, his first indica- tion of the "all or nothing" that marked the main steps of his life : missionary in Dakar, priest in the trenches in 19 14- 19 18, builder of the Dakar cathedral and of the Auteuil chapel. It recalls Little Theritse's "I will become a Saint". Both state- ments are bold, direct expressions of a spiritual type, a desire to live close to God; they link two souls which continue to work in tandem. THE CALL Daniel made his first holy communion in 1886 at the age of ten, and entered the junior seminary of Blois the following year. His school companions remember a lively, outgoing boy, even mischievous, but good-hearted. After the long years of the senior seminary he was ordained priest 22 Octo- ber 1899 by Bishop Laborde of Blois. He was assigned to the Free School of Pontlevoy, where he worked marvels with the LIFE AND WORK 9 children. But something was wanting, his field of action was limited, his apostolic soul sought outlet. He chose to become a missionary and entered the Holy Ghost Congregation. The exchange of heart-rending ietters with his parents and family makes clear that the latter, although greatly anguished, ac- cepted the sacrifice with a good heart. After a year's novitiate at Orly near Paris he left for Africa in 1903. He wrote the following words to Archbishop Le Roy, the superior general, witnessing to his thirst for the apos- tolate, born of a deep life of prayer: "I have always envisaged the missionary's life as that of people willing to sacrifice them- selves for the salvation of souls". Again, they indicate the "all or nothing" of his life pattern. ST. LOUIS IN SENEGAL To his disappointment Fr. Brottier was assigned to the parish in the town of St. Louis, whereas he had dreamt of a rough life in the interior. Welcomed by his parish priest, Fr. Jalabert, later Bishop, he spent himself at his urban aposto- late. He turned his attention to the most abandoned of the time, the half-castes. Where many missionaries had des- paired of evangelizing them, Fr. Brottier succeeded in convinc- ing his companions there was hope. With youthful vigour he also turned towards the youth, revitalizing apostolic works that had died with the transfer of former priests. He gave weekly instructions to the students of Faidherbe secondary school; he founded a child-aid centre; he published a parish bulletin in 1906 that still appears today under a title he would have liked, "Unite". But the first issue was hardly out when he fell sick and was advised to return to France. After six months with his family he wondered if God was not calling him to be a Trappist. Nothing came of it and he returned to St. Louis in 1907, where he developed his journal- istic talents and organized a band. St. Louis was giving him full scope for priestly and missionary activity; he was creative, enterprising, progressive and disturbing! Prayer sustained all this activity, but his health deteriorated. He had to come home again. LIFE AND WORK A major interlude in his life at this juncture was his stay at the Trappist monastery of the Islands of Lerins. Back in France in June 19 1 1, his old desire to enter a monastery awoke. The following letter reveals his state of soul, torn between contemplative and active life, and his total surrender to God's will. Paris, 2 November 191 1 Dear Martha and Madeleine, You will probably remember as clearly as I an evening in April 1908 when I told you my intentions of enter- ing the Trappists. You also know how I nourished this in my heart and hoped to follow it up. I made a deci- sion and must tell you about it. From 20 to 30 September, unknown to Bishop Jala- bert and with the sole permission of Archbishop Le Roy, I spent in the Trappist monastery of Lerins in the Mediterranean. I lived unforgettable hours in the re- collection of the cloister in an atmosphere of sacrifice and immolation. But the lack of sleep, and especially of food, wore me down and after a few days I had to yield to the evidence: I was not made for this kind of life. I came back to Paris, and now, bravely and without looking back, I face the future whatever it be. There are big question-marks over my return to St. Louis. I have promised to leave all to providence and take no steps, for or against. That is the only way for a religious to do his duty. D. Brottier THE AFRICAN MEMORIAL: THE CATHEDRAL AT DAKAR This enterprise must be looked at in its historical context. Bishop Jalabert's plan could appear "colonial", like building a hospital or a governor general's residence, but his perspective was different. Dakar, of which Jalabert was bishop, was "the daughter of the Holy Ghost Fathers, born in 1846 on the initia- LIFE AND WORK 11 tive of a young Spiritan, Fr. Arragon; thanks to him the gate to West Africa was opened to the gospel and to France" (from Fr. Yves Pichon's biography of Fr. Brottier). Bishop Jalabert's twofold objective in one operation was to build a fitting place of worship as a cathedral, and a monument of homage to all who gave their energy, blood and life for the sake of Africa, in the service of the African people. Fr. Brottier had just re- turned to France, forced by poor health to leave Africa for good. The bishop knew Fr. Brottier's potential. He ap- pointed him vicar general of Dakar "residing in Paris" and director of the African Memorial. Fr. Brottier was enthusiastic that even in France he would be doing a missionary task. He threw all his energy into the new apostoiate; he set up a secretariate and a public relations office that offended some of his zealous confreres; he in- volved lay people; he gave a soul to the work that Christians in France could not ignore. A network of reliable friends took shape that gradually covered all France. He concentrated on the African Memorial for seven years over two periods, 19 1 1- 19 14 and 19 19-1923. It brought out his qualities and virtues providentially; his great faith and missionary spirit mobilized his remarkable human qualities. It challenged him adequately as he brought Bishop Jalabert's dream to a reality. On 2 Feb- ruary 1936 the Dakar cathedral was consecrated by Cardinal Verdier, papal legate. Notably absent from the ceremony was Fr. Brottier himself, who preferred to remain hidden in the hour of glory; instead, he delivered an electrifying address - his last - to his children in Auteuil, who had gathered to honour him that day. My Children, I cannot find words to thank you for this surprise today. It is very moving for me. This intimate cele- bration gives me more joy than had I gone to Dakar with the cardinal. Children, my happiness is rooted in you. When I was beginning twenty-five years of work on the African Memorial, if I had known the joy you would procure me today it would have been enough. People are surprised I did not go to Dakar to receive laurels.' I am past the age for human hon- ours; besides, about Dakar, I never thought an instant of human glory. God's love brings events together for his greatest glory. You must know that without Bi- 12 LIFE AND WORK shop Jalabert and the African Memorial, there would be no chapel to St. Thergse here today. Nor would I be here with you, dear children. As long as the breath of life lasts we must bless God and sing forever the Lord's mercies. Fr. Brottier's fine soul shines through this message to his children, twenty-six days before his death: self-effacement, complete abnegation in the light of God's glory alone.
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